Where the Heart Lies
by xdfxv
Summary: You would think being married to a Duke would make Miriel's life more enjoyable, right? Well, when Virion opens his big mouth and causes a rift between he and his wife, everyone in the family starts to doubt that question. Cowrite with Applauze!


**Hey there, everyone! Coming at you now is a super exciting fic, exciting because this is my first ever cowrite! This one was written between me and my dear friend Josh, aka Applauze! Make sure to check out his fics, especially since he'll be showing up in the Fire Emblem community more often.**

 **Both of us love Miriel, Virion, and the two together, so this is a fic starring them! Though, we added an additional member to the family, so Laurent gets a sibling in this one! And that will be all I say, so I'll just let you read and enjoy for yourself!**

 **Okay, so maybe I lied a bit. One last thing: DISCLAIMER-Fire Emblem does not belong to me, nor does it belong to Applauze.**

* * *

You would think that being married to a Duke would make Miriel's like more enjoyable. Right?

Oh no. That was far from the truth. Miriel sometimes wondered why she married Virion and became the Duchess of Rosanne. She hated being stuck in a big palace with a bunch of maids and servants all around her. Miriel was a shy and private person and often spent her time in a cottage away from the palace with both Laurent and Ricken. The one good thing about her marriage was her children. Her sons. Her flesh and blood. She adored them to death, even when she was mainly formal and firm with them. They always spent time together going through the vast collection of books Virion had but never touched. Within a way, Miriel adored her sons since they favored her so much, despite Laurent having Virion's face.

Virion, of course, spent his time hunting and practicing archery. His advisors hated that he wasted time so they transferred the state of affairs over to Miriel, who ran the kingdom very well. Rosanne entered a golden age it had never seen before and it was thanks to a woman they hardly knew anything about. Of course, everyone knew about Virion and disliked him but the flirtatious poetic man didn't care. As long as the country was going smoothly, he didn't care what Miriel did. He basically gave her the keys of the kingdom.

Miriel, of course, didn't mind, as long as Virion didn't make a fool of himself. Though, knowing the man in question, that happened more often than either would like.

* * *

One morning, Miriel and Virion were having breakfast together while waiting for their children to appear. They sat in silence eating for a while, until Virion finally spoke.

"My dear," he said. "Have you noticed anything different about our Laurent recently?"

Miriel glanced up for a moment, but immediately went back to her omelette. "I cannot say I have," she replied. Virion, of course, couldn't just tell her outright. She would probably have to endure him beating around the bush.

"Really? Someone as observant as yourself? You never noticed a shift in his demeanor around…certain people?"

"Virion, our sons will be arriving to breakfast shortly. If you wish to divulge information about one of them you really should do so quickly."

Virion sighed. Of course. Miriel always wanted to get to the point. "I believe our boy may be taken by a young lady."

"Really. Have you tested this hypothesis prior to claiming it?"

"Well, Chrom did visit us a week ago, and whenever Lucina was near, I noticed a change in the boy. A slight flush in the face, stuttering when usually he's quite eloquent…that is the sign of a youth infatuated!"

"Hm. Perhaps we should confront Laurent about this 'infatuation,' to ascertain its credibility."

"What? No, we mustn't! Miriel, my dove, Laurent is already so introverted as it is, this will only heighten it! It must be done gently."

"If you insist." Miriel decided that letting Virion take the lead on this. Romance was not her area of expertise, and besides. Laurent and Virion were already so vastly different, to have them try bonding over something that Virion had knowledge in could prove beneficial.

"Ah, young love…" Virion was poking at his food as he sighed dreamily. "I remember that feeling. The first time seeing that gorgeous red hair, that smile…"

Miriel couldn't help but crack a small smile, hearing Virion. As much as she wasn't one for flattery, hearing him speak so fondly of their romance, it did awaken tender feelings she never thought she had.

"Ah, yes…sweet Cordelia…"

"Cordelia?!" Miriel stood up, slamming her hands on the table and causing Virion to jump in his seat. She was a patient person, but to her, her husband, the father of her children, the man whose kingdom she basically ran, fantasize about being in love with some other girl…!

"M-Miriel! I meant-I don't know where Cordelia came from, I-" Virion tried to come up with an excuse, but the damage had been done.

As this was going on, Laurent and Ricken began walking to the dining room, blissfully unaware of what their father had done. Though, the fire spell that came shooting out of the door gave them an idea. That, and their mother storming out of the room. The two looked at each other, and Ricken ran after her, Laurent going into the kitchen to make sure his father hadn't been burned to a crisp.

* * *

Even though Laurent had far more in common with his mother, and knew his father had to be the one who had caused the rift between them this morning, the young Mage was still concerned about him. His mother kept her emotions guarded, which many people didn't understand. Just because she didn't show many that didn't mean they didn't exist. And Virion knew how to bring every one of them out. Unfortunately negative emotions were the ones he brought out more easily.

Virion sat at the half-charred table, lifting his teacup with a shaky hand, eyes glued to the remnant of his wife's fury. He didn't even notice that Laurent had entered until his son cleared his throat. Gasping Virion jumped, eyes shooting up to look at him. There was a flash of terror in his eyes (Laurent recognized it as the split second where his father thought he was his mother), but it soon turned to relief as he saw it was only his son. "Ah, L-Laurent," Virion said, smiling weakly. "Good morning. My apologies, your mother and I already finished breakfast..." Trying to avoid the elephant in the room. Obviously Laurent would need to address this carefully. He took a seat, having an idea of how he could approach this.

"Well, in all honesty I do not have the stomach for breakfast this morning," Laurent started. Perhaps Virion would note the concerning way he chose to open their conversation. Parents usually noted awkward phrasings. And fortunately Virion was not so dense that he did not notice. A look of worry suddenly graced his father's features, and he leaned forward.

"Why, Laurent…did something happen to you?"

"Yes." Oh dear, that sounded too eager… "Ahem. Yes. You see, I believe that I have made one of my friends upset with me."

Virion raised his eyebrows. "You? Really? One of the most peaceful people I know? Now how did you do that?"

He had taken the bait. Excellent. Now, what would Father do to irritate his mother…? Considering this was Virion, obviously it would be harder to ascertain. But he had witnessed enough of Virion's transgressions to know how they usually began. "I spoke out of turn, and I fear I offended someone." He could feel, in the pit of his stomach, the slightest feeling of apprehension admitting this fact about himself, but for the sake of his mother, he would relinquish it. "And…Lucina is the last person I would ever desire to hold me in contempt."

He noticed Virion's mouth twitch, and instantly he knew that his father knew of his infatuation. Of course-his father was an idiot savant, as it were. "Lucina? Why, Laurent…I would be honored to help you apologize in a gallant way."

Laurent nodded. "Thank you, Father. How would we begin?"

* * *

"Now, imagine I'm Lucina." They had moved to Virion's room, where he had donned clothes for royal occasions, and found a tiara to complete the picture. Laurent looked to the door, wondering if this was really worth not being by his mother's side. Hopefully things between her and Ricken were going better than this.

* * *

Ricken was trying his best to run after his mother, but that was no easy feat. Miriel was walking down the halls and corridors of the palace in a unusually fast pace, saying everything and anything with a negative conotation about Virion.

"Mom! Mom! Mom!" Ricken cried out while he ran after Miriel. Yet, even with all of his attempts, Miriel was clearly offended. He shook his head in disapproval. Virion had really done it this time. He had ticked her off to levels that should never been reached.

Conjuring a spell, Ricken flew in the air and plopped down right in front of his mother.

"Mom, just listen. I'm sure that dad didn't mean to offend you. You have to remember that he is.. um… he's.. now let me see.. uhh.."

"Coquettish. Was that the word you was seeking?" Miriel asked her son.

Ricken nodded his head in approval. "Thank you, Mom. You always know at me and Laurent haven't discovered yet."

Miriel couldn't help but smile at her son. It was during times like these that she loved her children so much. "Thank goodness they didn't inherit their father's personality or I'd have them murdered by now." She mumbled under her breath.

"What was that?" Ricken asked.

"Oh, it's nothing to waste thought on," Miriel ensured Ricken. He still didn't feel a full one hundred percent convinced, but he decided to take her word for it. They were heading toward the library when Miriel asked Ricken to go get some carrots.

"Mom, why do you need carrots? Panne doesn't like it when I take her food." Ricken pointed out. "Besides, did you do a experiment on carrots already?"

"I did, but that was with carrots and tomatoes. I want to do one with potatoes, one of the foods that Taguel like Panne can't digest. Besides, she has more than enough of a monumental feet to sustain her measurements of a average Taguel diet."

"Alright mom, if you insist." Ricken commented while he grabbed a basket and went outside. He adjusted his hat from his back and placed it on his head and off he went toward the gardens. It wasn't a far walk through the forest and into the many many gardens that his father insisted was on the royal grounds. That was another hobby of Virion's, gardening. He had flower gardens, vegetable gardens, fruit avenues and all other kinds of gardens.

It took the help of a servant to get Ricken to the right garden. He was walking toward the carrots when a familiar voice greeted him. "Free right there human spawn!"

Ricken turned around and saw Panne within her Taguel form, almost ready to claw him if he touched her carrots without her permission.

"Panne, I need some carrots from you. Well, I don't need them. My mother needs them."

"I swear, human spawn, your mother is going to make me attack her. This is the sixth time she's asked for carrots from me."

"She claims they you have more than enough to live off of."

"I do, but I just don't like giving up my carrots, human. You're lucky that I'm nice enough to compile to your mother's experiments. I'd attack you, but she has more powerful spells and I'm not risking the potato punishment again."

"Oh gosh, don't remind me. We could hear you screaming all over the castle."

Panne wanted to say something but she decided that it was better to keep her mouth shut. She grabbed a bag of carrots and threw them to Ricken, who took it as a sign to get out of there.

Once when he made it back to the library, he saw that the door was cracked, and smoke was coming out of the room. Ricken's heart started to pound out of his chest. He cracked the door, and saw that some fire spells had been casted at the shelves since books were everyone, some badly burnt beyond repair. He heard someone sobbing behind the desk.

Slowly but surely, he walked over to the desk. He peaked his head down and saw his mother on the floor, crying into her hat. Something within Ricken felt hurt since this was the first time he had seen his mother cried, ever. She was clearly heartbroken.

"Mom, are you alright?" Ricken asked. Miriel tired to speak but she couldn't and all she could do was nod her head no while she started crying again.

"Mom, it's going to be okay. You don't have to tell me a thing. I think I know what's wrong with you."

Miriel looked up through her tear stained glasses, and saw Ricken next to her. She leaned into his shoulders and sobbed her heart out. She felt alone now, and her children were her only comfort. While she cried and cried into Ricken's shoulder, she wondered where Laurent was, and wished that he was there, trying to calm her down. Poor Ricken started crying also since he couldn't take his mom crying and soon enough, both mother and son were crying together.

* * *

"Ahem. Ah…Lucina…?"

"Yeeeeees, Laurent~?" Virion asked in a falsetto that sounded nothing like Lucina at all. Okay, this was beyond ridiculous. Laurent had tried, but this was too much.

"Father, I regret to admit that I did not get into an altercation with Lucina."

"W-what? Why Laurent…did you lie to me? Why would you-" Virion gasped. "Oh, Son…I see."

"You do?"

"Yes…you're trying to convince me to apologize to Miriel. All this time, I tried distracting myself…oh Gods, how she must hate me!" Virion covered his eyes with his hand, Laurent watching him. His father actually figured it out? Laurent had to admit he was impressed. Maybe he wasn't as unintelligent as originally presumed.

"Of course, I must apologize! I caused all the problems and I just tried to avoid them! I'm a Duke, Laurent! I can't run from my problems!" Virion instantly vanished, running out of his room and through the hall. Laurent followed fast behind, just like his brother did with his mother earlier. "She would go to the library, would she not? Your mother loves it there…" Virion burst into the room, tiara and formal clothes still on. "Miriel, my darling, I'm so sorry, I-" he stopped, seeing his younger son and wife on the floor. "What happened here?!"

When Miriel looked up and saw Virion with a tiara on, she shrieked before she released another sob or two.

"What's with you, my love?" Virion asked while looking at Miriel.

All Miriel said through her sobs was a simple but short, "You."

"Dad, you've broken her heart. First, by telling about your love for Cordelia, and the hurt that you caused her. Then, you are wearing women's clothing. Based on how she's acting right now, she feels embarrassed and rather ashamed at you." Ricken replied.

Virion's heart sunk. Reality just struck him with a powerful blow and he realized that maybe he shouldn't have been running from his troubles the whole time. He was filled with so much regret and hurt. He crawled onto the floor and lifted up Miriel's chin.

"Sweetheart, I love you very much, really I do. I would never hurt you, really I wouldn't. I guess I just felt like that running from my problems was the best thing to do, but it did more harm than good. I guess that you've earn to right to whatever you want to call me. I deserve it."

Miriel looked at Virion and shook her head. "And why would I do that? When your virtue and your philosophy has came out of the cave and has embraced the light. Your honesty means so much to me. It touches a thought, a box that hasn't been touched in a while." She pointed out.

Virion gave a small cry before he embraced his wife in a hug. "I promise that I will start changing for the better, Miriel."

"And that's all I ask of you, Virion. Just try to change, and be a ruler instead of a sloth."

"I will. I'll start changing tomorrow but right now, I was thinking that we could play a little cat and mouse."

"Cat and mouse? What kind of utter nonsense are you hinting at?"

"You'll figure it out, dearest."

Virion started to walk off but not before giving Miriel a wink. It took the brainiac a moment to try and solve what he was hinting at but when she did, she chased after him, giggling the whole time.

Once when they left, Ricken and Laurent shook their heads. They loved their parents, but sometimes, they had a bit of a wildside. Of course, the thing with Lucina had to be solved.

"So, do you want to help me figure someway to conquer the chemistry and the heart of a woman?" Laurent asked.

"Sure, why not? I have nothing else better to do." Ricken replied. "Yet, how are we going to do it."

"Oh brother, you have so much to learn from my knowledge and studies. I got a few theories and hypotheses up my sleeve."

"Well, if you insist, big brother." Ricken smiled up at him, and the two walked off. Finally, everything was at peace…well, all but the servants in the palace. Fixing the charred remains of the dining room would be anything but peaceful.


End file.
